I need someone to explain this one thing

canroadrunner

I've made this into a separate topic because it's the one thing I don't understand.

My cut value is 2000 and my BMR is 1500.

I understand what you are saying to be eat to my cut value on rest days and on workout days, don't eat back my exercise calories unless I burn over 500 calories and then I eat the excess over 500 calories in order to eat up to my BMR.

What I don't understand is why I would eat to net 2000 on rest days but only eat to net 1500 on workout days?

Beastette

If I understand your question, you are confusing BMR and TDEE? Your BMR is what you need to stay alive if you never move a muscle all day. Your TDEE is the total daily calorie expenditure, what you burn in a 24 hour period.

If you are "eating more", then you should always eat more than your BMR. My BMR is 1450, my TDEE is usually 3,000 on workout days and 2250 on non-workout days. Make sense?

canroadrunner

Actually no. My question is - why on workout days are your net calories less than on non workout days? You eat to your cut value on both days but your net on workout days is less - why?

Beastette

My net is not less on workout days. I eat more on workout days, because I work more.

I eat 2200-2400 on workout days. I eat 1900-2200 on rest days. I typically burn over 700 calories on workout days.

canroadrunner

If I understand your response, you don't seemed to be eating back your exercise calories on workout days. Therefore, your net is less. 2400 - 700 calorie workout nets 1700 calories which is less than the 1900 calories you eat on rest days.

And this is why I"m not getting it. The explanations in the pegged items are to eat your TDEE -15% on rest days and eat the same amount on work out days as long as you don't go below your BMR in which case you eat enough to bring up to your BMR.
That would mean that on workout days, even though you might have eaten more gross calories, your net calories are less than on non workout days. Why?

ellie78

Think of it as an average. The TDEE accounts for you activity level and exercise so it is basically an average of what your body needs each day over the course of a week. Depending on how active you are on non-workout days and how intense your workouts are, yes, the net calories will change day to day but should more or less balance out over the course of a week.

If you ate only your BMR on non-workout days you would end up netting under your BMR just through basic activity unless you really did absolutely nothing all day, which of course none of us do. If you were then doing heavy workouts that took your net down to 1500 on workout days your calories would be too low overall as your average would be a net under your BMR. So again, the balance part.

Its not about only needing the 1500 on workout days, its that you need at least 1500 so you need to make sure you get that if you exercise heavy.

ANewLucia

It really is a numbers game...an estimate...what is easy for a person that has been low caling for so long. Based on what I have read, this is it...you need to run at a deficit to lose weight...but not a such a low deficit. You want people to be pretty consistent...this is an easy way to be consistent. It is stressed over and over to at least net BMR...the TDEE takes into consideration your exercise and there are days you don't exercise, so it all balances out if you have done your calculations right and there is never a day you are eating less than your BMR.

canroadrunner

Thank you all for the explanations. Appreciate it.